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Join Professor Jeffrey Sachs and futurist Ray Kurzweil for a compelling conversation on the accelerating pace of technological change and its profound implications for the future of humanity. In his new book, The Singularity Is Nearer, Kurzweil revisits and updates his groundbreaking predictions on AI & AGI, exponential growth, and human evolution and longevity.

Together, they explore a future where AI rivals human intelligence by 2029, nanotechnology rebuilds the world atom by atom, and our minds merge with the cloud to expand intelligence beyond biological limits. They examine radical life extension, the promise of renewable energy, and how exponential technologies are reshaping industries, reducing poverty, and transforming global well-being. But, they also confront the risks while discussing a vision of the future - both awe-inspiring and cautionary - challenging us to rethink what it means to be human in an age of rapid and relentless innovation.

The Book Club with Jeffrey Sachs is brought to you by the SDG Academy, the flagship education initiative of the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network. Learn more and get involved at bookclubwithjeffreysachs.org.

Footnotes:

• AI
• AGI
• The Singularity is Near
• Dartmouth Workshop
• Martin Kosinski
• Neuromed
• Biotechnology
• Frank Rosenblatt
• Perceptron
• Exponential Growth
• Turing Test
• Longevity
• Humanoid Robots
• Virtual Reality
• Neocortex
• Artificial Consciousness

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Join Professor Jeffrey Sachs and American historian Lauren Benton for a discussion on the hidden histories of empires and the lasting impact of imperial violence. In her book, They Called It Peace: Worlds of Imperial Violence Benton uncovers how European powers built and maintained their empires through relentless cycles of raiding, slaving, and plunder—while portraying their conquests as missions of order and peace.

Together, they explore the brutal mechanics of colonial expansion, the blurred lines between war and peace, and how fragile truces paved the way for endless conflict. Was imperial violence an aberration, or did it set the stage for the perpetual wars that define our world today? With insights spanning centuries and continents, this episode confronts the uncomfortable truths about power, violence, and the myths that continue to shape global order.

The Book Club with Jeffrey Sachs is brought to you by the SDG Academy, the flagship education initiative of the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network. Learn more and get involved at bookclubwithjeffreysachs.org.

Footnotes:

• Imperialism
• International Law
• Empires
• History of Wars
• Law of War
• Long 19th Century
• State of Exception
• Perpetual War
• Reconquista
• Exterminatory Violence
• 1492: Conquest of Paradise
• War Trueces
• Informal Empire
• Neocolonialism
• British Merchants
• Policing
• The Dividing of Africa by Europe
• War Against Tasmanian Aborigines
• Drone Warfare

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➡️ Website: bookclubwithjeffreysachs.org

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Join Professor Jeffrey Sachs and historian, Professor Richard Overy for an insightful conversation on one of humanity’s most unsettling questions: Why do we wage war? In his book, Why War? Overy takes us on a journey across time, from the ancient battlefields of the Roman Empire to the devastation of the World Wars and the conflicts shaping our present.

Together, they examine what drives organized violence? Is it hardwired into human nature, or does it stem from competition for resources, power, and security? Drawing on psychology, history, and political strategy, Overy dissects the deep-rooted forces behind war— confronting the stark realities of conflict and examining whether war is an inescapable part of our past—or an unavoidable part of our future. This episode doesn’t shy away from the hard truths—there are no easy answers, and Overy delivers no false hope.

The Book Club with Jeffrey Sachs is brought to you by the SDG Academy, the flagship education initiative of the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network. Learn more and get involved at bookclubwithjeffreysachs.org.

Footnotes:

• Why Do Humans Make War?
• Statecraft
• Yugoslav Wars
• Aristotelianism
• Barbarian
• Proxy War
• Peloponnesian Wars
• Thucydides
• Jihad
• Israeli - Palestinian Conflict
• Nuremberg Trials
• Hermann Goering
• Demagogue of Athens
• Britain Mercantile State
• New Imperialism
• Hobbes Social Contract
• Munich Agreement
• Operation Paperclip
• Stalin’s Rise to Power

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➡️ Website: bookclubwithjeffreysachs.org

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